15 Select Restaurants in Sapporo, Hokkaido with Fantastic Lunches at Great Prices

Sapporo, which is one of Hokkaido's leading gourmet cities, has many restaurants serving tasty lunches at affordable prices. This article introduces 15 restaurants for fantastic lunches with great bang for the buck.

This is a restaurant serving Western-style cuisine made with Hokkaido ingredients such as herbs from own farm and vegetables from local farms. At lunchtime, guests can enjoy their meals in a light-filled room with large windows through which there is a view of a beautiful courtyard. The recommended item here is the [Yezo Shika Deer Meat Tagliatelle Simmered in Red Wine] (2,100 JPY) with a demi glace sauce of Yezo Shika that has been cooked for four hours. This is a dish befitting a restaurant that seeks to create a sense of being at one with nature. The [Black Rice Casserole] (1,650 JPY), which started as a meal for the staff, used to be a secret dish that the regulars popularized. The key to its appeal is the rich flavors of the liver.

2. Koka Odori Bisse Branch (Odori / Chinese Cuisine)

A famous Chinese restaurant in the Susukino area of Sapporo has opened a branch in the more convenient Central Sapporo. At this restaurant, you can enjoy food from the Four Great Chinese Cuisines (Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, and Canton) by a chef who was awarded a Medal of Honor with a Yellow Ribbon by the Japanese government as a public role model in his profession. Lunches include a Special Lunch that starts at 1,296 JPY with one item to be selected from a weekly menu. There are also courses starting at 2,500 JPY that include a variety of items such as [Xiaolongbao] and [Chili Shrimp and Egg with Chinese Bun]. These prices are a steal for such high quality authentic Chinese cuisine.

3. Four Seasons [New Otani Inn Sapporo] (Sapporo / Japanese Cuisine)

This is a restaurant that prides itself in Japanese, Western, and Chinese dishes that preserve the traditional tastes of New Otani Hotel while adding Hokkaido flavors. Lunchtime is casual and appropriate for anyone to drop in, and offers items such as the [Healthy Combination Plate] (1,700 JPY), a great way to get a balanced meal of fish, meat and vegetables, and the [Chef's Lunch] (1,450 JPY and up) that changes weekly. The appetizer, soup, salad, sweets, and drinks are selectable from a buffet. There are also Japanese standards, such as the [Ginza Pork Fillet Cutlet Curry] (1,800 JPY).

4. picolo MODENA Sapporo-ekimae branch (Sapporo / Izakaya)

This is a restaurant to enjoy large meat dishes in a space with contemporary design and brick walls. Its specialty is the [Frozen Dynamic Lemon Sour (1,000 ml)] (980 JPY). The recommended lunch dish is the [Tomato Soba - Using Kelp Noodles] (880 JPY), a noodle dish with an exquisite tomato soup flavored with shellfish extract and topped with fantastic homemade roast beef. It is a unique item with noodles made with kelp instead of buckwheat. There are many more dishes irresistible to meat lovers, such as the [Pork Ginger Plate] (980 JPY) and [Sagari (hanging tender) Bowl] (1,200 JPY).

5. Natural & Organic Bal Alice-no-Niwa (Sapporo / Italian Cuisine)

This is an organic restaurant where you can thoroughly enjoy the bounty of Hokkaido with ingredients procured from reliable, local sources. The featured item in the lunch course is the [Matsuhashi Beef], a high-grade beef from the Tokachi area. It is procured directly from the farm so it can be offered at a reasonable price. [Alice's Bagna Cauda] (1,400 JPY) that comes with a generous serving of organic vegetables is also a signature menu item. The deep flavors of the sauce made with soy milk bring out the sweetness of the vegetables. The restaurant is full of greenery, so you can relax in a space that feels like a forest.

6. Sapporo Modern Restaurant Erimotei (Sapporo / Japanese)

This is a retro-modern restaurant in a 70-year-old ryokan (Japanese style inn) building that has been renovated into space with Japanese and Western elements. It is filled with appealing spaces, such as a terrace in the style of an English garden and an open semi-basement area. The restaurant serves the freshest ingredients from the season caught at Cape Erimo—considered to be a treasure trove of food—and soba noodles that are sure to get you hooked. The recommended lunch course, [Camelia Gourmet Gozen] (reservations required) includes seafood brandade, roasted Oshamanbe Berkshire pork, Erimo soba and a seafood bowl for just 2,000 JPY.

7. Kitanoaji Mirai (Sapporo / Izakaya)

This is a restaurant where guests can enjoy the bounty of the seas of Hokkaido at reasonable prices. The owner of the restaurant goes to the Sapporo Central Wholesale Market every day to gather information and draw on his keen eyes to select the best ingredients to serve in the [Seafood Bara Chirashi] (850 JPY) seafood bowl and [Sashimi Teishoku] (750 JPY)] set at lunchtime. The [Makunouchi Bento] (750 JPY) that includes a variety of dishes, such as grilled and deep-fried items, served bento box style is also recommended. Items such as hair crab and broadbanded thornyhead that are not on the menu can also be requested if you are making reservations in advance.

8. Restaurant BORDEAUX (Susukino / French)

This is a restaurant in a fantastic location in the middle of Susukino, where you can enjoy authentic French cuisine. The lunch that includes an appetizer buffet of approximately 30 items made in regional styles with seasonal ingredients and a choice of a meat or fish main dish that changes monthly is popular. There are also cheeses, dry-cured ham, and desserts in the buffet, in addition to the appetizers. The main dish is freshly cooked and served at the table. The restaurant is in a hotel and offers excellent services, with services for guests who do not speak Japanese.

9. Kafebiyori (Makomanai / Cafe)

This is a cafe in a building that looks like a private residence, and like most Japanese houses, shoes are taken off at the entrance. Homemade lunches and sweets are served in a space that feels like a friendly family home. The [Biyori Original Soup Curry] (1,280 JPY), made with bouillon and Japanese dashi stock, has been popular since it was introduced. It is filled with seasonal local vegetables and served piping hot in an earthenware pot. The [Toasted Cheese Curry] (1,180 JPY), with the perfect combination of melted cheese and spicy curry, is also recommended.

10. Munakata (Maruyama koen / Japanese & Kaiseki Cuisine)

Munakata is a restaurant to enjoy authentic, high-end Japanese cuisine at reasonable prices, where the owner will greet you with a smile. The recommended lunch is the [Munakata Shunzen Bento], a popular item that combines the wonderful flavors served at dinner. It is a great way to enjoy a little bit of various outstanding dishes, such as [Saikyo-style Grilled Silver Flounder] and [Shrimp Paste Soup]. The [Lunchtime Fugu Shunzen] (3,000 JPY), served only on weekdays, is a six-dish meal of pufferfish at a reasonable price. It is only available during the winter, so try not to miss it.

11. Yakiniku Bar Tamura Akarenga Terrace Branch (Sapporo / Yakiniku)

This chic meat bar in the popular Akarenga Terrace of Sapporo is run by a butcher, so the quality of the meat is assured. It prides itself in the Japanese BBQ of A5 grade meat and creative tapas dishes, and the most popular item at lunchtime is the [NIKU BAR Tapas Palette]. It includes a main dish that changes daily, such as A5 grade wagyu kalbi steak or grilled breaded seasonal seafood with herbs, that is served with soup, salad, bread or rice and dessert for just 1,944 JPY. The flavors are unforgettable.

12. NOYMOND Organic Cafe Le Trois Branch (Odori / Cafe)

This is an organic cafe with a natural and serene feel in Le Trois, a mall connected to Odori Station. The healthy menu items made with an abundance of carefully selected fresh vegetables are recommended for lunch. Lunch dishes include the spicy [Taco Rice NOYMOND Style] (1,080 JPY) and the [Grilled Chicken Rice Bowl] (1,080 JPY) with chicken marinated in a sweet and savory soy-based sauce. The [French Toast] (750 JPY and up) made with fresh milk from the Tokachi area of Hokkaido and fresh eggs is also worth a try and has a wonderfully moist texture.

13. Minoya (Odori / Izakaya)

This is an izakaya with a comfortable interior with jazz music playing in the background, where you can savor in fresh seafood from Hokkaido. The high-quality food is prepared with love and care by the chefs to make sure the ingredients are served at their best. At lunchtime, items such as [Sashimi Set Meal] (980 JPY) of fresh fish procured at the market in the morning and [Hokke Set Meal] (980 JPY) of a large grilled Okhotsk Atka mackerel​ offered at a loss, can be enjoyed at reasonable prices. There is also a wide selection of items for the health-conscious, such as the [Ladies Gozen] (850 JPY) that includes rice cooked with 15 different grains.

14. ALL DAY DINING MEM (ANA Crowne Plaza Sapporo) (Sapporo / Western)

This is a restaurant with a stunning live kitchen where guests can see the food being created in front of their eyes. The flames rising up, the comforting sound of the food being grilled, and the lovely aromas create a wonderful harmony for all five sense to enjoy. Served here is a luxurious hotel buffet lunch. The buffet includes a wide selection of colorful seasonal vegetables procured mainly from Hokkaido and appetizers in mini glasses. The main dishes are meat and fish that the chefs cook with their outstanding skills. There is even dessert, so you will have the satisfaction of enjoying a full course meal.

15. Seppou (Kotoni / Sushi)

This is a restaurant serving sushi and Kaiseki cuisine (traditional Japanese course cuisine) run by a chef who trained in Kyoto-style Kaiseki cuisine. It is renowned for the food that is innovative but based on traditional skills. The [Lunch Only Mini Kaiseki] is a great way to experience the wonderful food at this restaurant. The flower basket filled with numerous creative dishes made with fresh, seasonal ingredients is truly a work of art that pleases the eyes and introduces the flavors of Japan's seasons. There is much more in the course, such as tempura and sushi, all for just 4,000 JPY. This is a great opportunity to experience luxury at affordable prices.

Did any of these restaurants pique your interest? Be sure to take advantage of the lunches in Sapporo that are great bang for the buck to enjoy the flavors of the food kingdom of Hokkaido, blessed with wonderful meat, fish and vegetables.

Disclaimer: All information is accurate at time of publication.

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